This is a blog that Andy has written to describe his battle with cystic fibrosis. Andy is 40 years old and is married to his beautiful bride Andrea and has two miracle children, Avery and Ethan. Andy appreciates each day and hopes to show the doubters that in his world CF stands for Can Fight!

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

The doctor

Well, being that this is my first blog entry, I will try not to make it too long and monotonous.

The past month has been interesting. I was honored to be the best man in Ross Jacobs' wedding. Ross and I lived together for several years and we have remained extremely close. He and his lovely bride, Summer, had a beautiful wedding in Pennsylvania and it was an honor to emcee on Saturday night and give a toast on Sunday.

The following week was quite busy. I had a doctor's appointment last Friday that I was really worried about. My pulmonary numbers have plummeted over the last few months. I didn't want to go on IV's but at least I'd gotten past the three weddings in April and May that Andrea and I had to travel for.

I've been working out extra hard the last six months. I work out 8 to 12 times a week which includes running a mile a day, playing softball once a week and strength-training six times a week.

My pulmonary function tests went alright. I was up but only 1 to 2%. The good news is I was able to get off antibiotics for the first time in months. The negative is that I'm still doing two hours of treatments a day this month and every other month, I'll be administering four hours of treatments a day.

I'm concerned that I won't be able to run the Peachtree. It's only a month from now. I plan to start running two-mile treks twice a week starting next week.

Avery and Ethan continue to surprise me. Avery is growing up before my very eyes and Ethan is talking and it is very obvious that the speech and physical therapy have been well worth it. Kudos to Andrea for finding all of the specialists that have helped make our son a true miracle. I take pictures and videos of them everyday because I don't want to forget these times.

I go through ups and downs both physically and emotionally and that has affected both me and my family. Some of this is tied to cystic fibrosis. The life expectancy most recently was 37 years. I turn 37 in 87 days. It’s really scary.

I continue to work on The Drive at 35 which I hope to not only be an inspirational story but also to be quite realistic to anyone with physical or emotional problems. We all have our faults and issues and this book is no fairy tale.

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About Me

I have cystic fibrosis. I have a beautiful wife and 2 great kids that my wife and I had through IVF since CF caused me to be infertile. I just finished my new book which will be in bookstores next year. I'm also a motivational speaker and fundraiser. I have spoken all over the U.S. and recently spoke in Wexford, Ireland. My event, A Wish for Wendy, has raised over $1.25 million in 12 years. I ran with the Olympic Torch in 2001. I speak to several groups about cystic fibrosis as well as my bouts with depression. I became the first board member of the Georgia CF Foundation to have cystic fibrosis. My dad and I started the Wish for Wendy Foundation in memory of my sister Wendy who passed away from CF. While CF has brought a lot of pain to my life, I feel very fortunate for the people I have in my life. I have written 3 books already. The Drive at 35 is my third book and hopefully the best. This memoir talks about my issues with CF, depression and many other items. The book has forewords from Garth Brooks and Celibe Dion. If anyone is interested in my book, please e-mail me at andy@andylipman.com.